Concrete & Copper Lamp

Since modernity, design has become a substantial contributor to some of the major issues we’re faced with today. Particularly environmental decay and social iniquity. We need a new way of thinking about what makes for good design.

Beyond mere pragmatism good design should also be gentle to the Earth and serve as a soft reminder of what really matters in our time in this world. This means a shift away from design that promotes mindless consumerism and the unforgiving extraction of natural resources.

I propose a way of designing that considers all of this, and still manages to be beautiful. This project will be my first exploration of this way of designing. The Razmi 1 is a desk lamp that will be made of three primary components: a concrete base, a copper stem, and a steel bowl shade. The idea here is that the main components of the product are all things which are either usually discarded or easily accessible. This puts good design back where it belongs: in the hands of the people.

Things you'll need:

1m 15mm dia. copper tube

1x lamp bayonette

3m 2-core cable

1x switch

1x 3-pronged plug

1x 45 deg. copper elbow

2x 90 deg. copper elbow

1x LED bulb

1kg cement

1kg building sand

A3 sheet of corrugated cardboard

A3 board of hardboard

Discarded steel bowl (for the shade)

Supplies:

Step 1: Cut the Copper Pipes to Length

Here are the lengths:

1x 65mm

3x 210mm

Step 2: Making the Concrete Cast

Cut and glue the cardboard to the hardboard base to create the formwork for the concrete, as shown in the image. I made it about 15mm high, 250mm long, and 170mm wide.

Line the inside of the formwork with something waterproof — I just used some clingwrap from the kitchen.

Step 3: Drilling Into the Pipe

Drill 2 holes near the bottom of the pipe which will be cast into the concrete base.

One of the holes will be submerged in the concrete so that the stem of the lamp stays in the base. The second hole is for the electrical cable.

Feed the cable into the topmost of the holes you just drilled. I had to use some petroleum jelly.